Geekbench 2.0.17 is a simple and fast benchmarking program designed for the Mac, but also available for Linux and Windows. That being the case. Geekbench is a great benchmarking program because it allows for comparison of equal hardware on separate software. The test it runs is relatively fast(under a minute). The results come back in a neat and clean cascading bar graph. After the test is ran you can also submit the results online to be compared with other computers. Compatible with multi-threaded, multi-core and multi CPU systems, Geekbench is a great utility that will be more then welcome in my Applications folder.

You can grab the app over at Primate Labs

The beta version of Firefox 3 has been available for quite sometime. While I have been using it I have found nothing but improvements to both the design/interface and the overall ease of use. Here are some of my favorite new features being introduced in Firefox 3.

• One-click site info: Click the site favicon in the location bar to see who owns the site and to check if your connection is protected from eavesdropping.

• Easier password management: an information bar replaces the old password dialog so you can now save passwords after a successful login.

• Resumable downloading: users can now resume downloads after restarting the browser or resetting your network connection.

• Save what you were doing: Firefox will prompt users to save tabs on exit.

• Integration with the Mac: the new Firefox theme makes toolbars, icons, and other user interface elements look like a native OS X application. Firefox also uses OS X widgets and supports Growl for notifications of completed downloads and available updates. A combined back and forward control make it even easier to move between web pages.

• Tags: associate keywords with your bookmarks to sort them by topic

• Location bar & auto-complete: type in all or part of the title, tag or address of a page to see a list of matches from your history and bookmarks; a new display makes it easier to scan through the matching results and find that page you’re looking for.

• Web-based protocol handlers: web applications, such as your favorite webmail provider, can now be used instead of desktop applications for handling mailto: links from other sites. Similar support is available for other protocols

• Memory usage: Several new technologies work together to reduce the amount of memory used by Firefox 3 over a web browsing session. Memory cycles are broken and collected by an automated cycle collector, a new memory allocator reduces fragmentation, hundreds of leaks have been fixed, and caching strategies have been tuned.

With the intended launch date some time in June you can look forward to seeing it soon. If you cant wait you can always head on over to Mozzila Firefox page and pick up the beta.

I was wandering around the Adobe site and came across the Air page and noticed Pownce, The file sharing based friend community, was featured on the home page. Since Air was released I always thought it had a bunch of potential.

I was really excited when I got an excuse to use it every day. First when the Pownce app came out and also with Twhirl. Both have a beautiful UI and work flawlessly. The XML based application is still a little above my head but it seems like the possibilities are endless. Mainly because the Air App is available for any OS. Meaning all Air App’s are useable on all OS’s as long as you have the client already installed. Head on over to the Adobe Air Product page for some more apps and info.

If you are interested in more Air apps you can check out the Adobe Air Marketplace for all kinds of air apps. Over 1,600 apps and growing!

Sorry about now new articles in awhile. I was on vacation up north. But I’m back so look for new articles tomorrow!

I use my Mac for a BUNCH of things, and in doing so, I need it to a bunch of things. Many which it can’t do out of the box. Primarily keeping it form going to sleep when closing it. Awhile back a good friend had an acer which he would close and through in his backpack. The cool though was that he had iTunes running while it was in his backpack. Another reason I kinda wish it would stay awake while closed is when I hook it up to my TV I have to turn my computer around, because having another mini display of the TV is just damn annoying.

This is were the nice little mac app, InsomniaX by semaja2, comes in to play. After downloading and installing you have the option to let the Mac run normally or in insomnia mode. Which of course keeps your mac awake even when the lid is closed. It also gives you the advanced features of choosing to just put the display or the system and the display.

So there ya go. I know this app has a home on my Mac. Hopefully it helps you out too.

1.6.1 is for the most part a security and stability update. Thats good news though if you haven’t tried it in awhile. I used it for the longest time until I reformatted my HDD and just went with Firefox instead. If your on a mac and want a slightly different browsing experience then the one your getting now, Camino won’t disappoint.

Camino 1.6 requires Mac OS X 10.3.9 or higher. Download here Camino 1.6 (15.5MB)

It’s here! So, not to long ago woot.com was having another spectacular woot off and I just so happened to be there when the DigiPro 5.5×4 Drawing tablet came up for the oh so sweet price of $24.99(+$5 SH). There was no way I could pass up on offer like. Especially since I have been toying with the idea of buying a tablet for the past few years. So here is the summary:

First off, It’s surprisingly stylish. It has a sleek white exterior that will match any Mac flawlessly. The inner tablet is 5.5×4 with a one inch bezel around three sides and about 1.5 on top. The pen it comes with is very heavy and stable, great for doing precession work. The Plug and Play on the Mac was great. I plugged it in and Ink opened right up and helped me get started. It gave me the option of using it for handwriting but I’m not into that at the moment. It also came with drivers for OS X. I didn’t feel it was necessary but I installed it anyways. After installing and restarting, a program launched that allowed me to tweak settings and set corners as hot points for launching applications.

After everything was installed and configured a launched Photoshop and started fooling around a bit trying to get used to it. Now the box claims 512 levels of pressure sensitivity and that is very apparent in PS. I tried drawing something but all I got was a pathetic line. After much frustration I realized I actually needed to push down on the pen to get a thicker line. This was someting I was not used to but immediatly appreciated.

All in all, a great buy for $25. I strongly recomend the DigiPro if you can get yours hands on one.

As for now it’s still just a rumor but I can actually see this concept becoming a reality. The idea is a full sized Apple keyboard with the right area (the area that used to be designated for the num pad) a touch sensitive display type apparatus. Which has the ability to display anything from an ipod-esque click wheel to becoming a simple track pad for easy navigation.

It is believed that an upcoming software update for the Apple TV will include for .mac support. Which means the ability to read and right E-mail as well as the ability to use iChat and manage photos. If this does happen, this keyboard suddenly makes that much more sense.

Via Macenstein

Now, I’m no program designer but I have needed to make a .DMG image many times before. It’s always been a hassle too. Especially because I like to give mine cool backgrounds and such. I mainly use DMG’s distributing multiple smaller apps inside of one easy and convient package.

Just the other day though I was lucky enough to stumble over this neat little app. SimplyDisk 1.1 includes tons of great features in a very simple and small package. Some of the highlights of the program are it’s ability to encrypt the disk image as well as the ability to include and display a SLA (Service License Agreement) upon opening the disk image. Other wise it has the ability to create a disk image of any size as well as choosing a custom icon and background for the image. DMG/ Disk Images are a great way to succesfully and safely transfering all varities of media and files. So whether your an indy software devloper or just a creative person looking to deliver your content in a pleasing manner, I suggest you give SimplyDisk 1.1 a try.

SimplyDisk1.1

Well, Al Gore my argue that one but oh well. So, the internet, wether you may know it or not offers you quite a few different uses. So why not take advantage of it. Here are my tips for taking over the internet.

Utilize RSS. It’s there. Why not use it. It’s one of those things that after you get over the initial hill, you’ll never go back. Before RSS I spent precious time surfing my favorite website to see if they had new content only to find they don’t. Now, they all had RSS, but I was just to lazy to get into it. However, I finally caved. The program I started using to manage all of my RSS feeds was NewsFire for OS X. It changed everything, The time to knowledge acquired ratio increased greatly. Now, with a simple glance, I can see who updated, and what’s new. Its free to. Why not check it out and subscribe to appleaddiction while your at it: http://feeds.feedburner.com/Appleaddiction

Newsfirerss.com